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A Jam Headset

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In the past I have looked at a number of products from the HMDX range of Jam audio devices. Up till now these devices have been Bluetooth speakers but this next offering, while supporting Bluetooth and providing audio output, belongs to a different category of product. It is the JamTransit. This is a set of wireless stereo headphones.

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Attractively packaged in a clear plastic case with a carry handle, the JamTransit arrives partially charged so that it can be put to immediate use. Included in the case with the headphones is a micro-to-standard USB lead plus documentation that consists of a folded sheet of instructions and details of HMDX two year warranty offered with the product.

Following Henry Ford’s concept of marketing, users have a choice of purchasing this headset in black only. This is an on-the-ear style of headset. The metallic headband is encased in compressed plastic. In its closed state, the headband measures 32cm and it can be extended by as much as 25mm at each end to help accommodate different head sizes. Rather surprisingly, the headset’s developers have taken the decision not to include any padding on the headband.

There is some faux leather covered padding on the ear pieces which does help to a degree but does not really compensate for the lack of headband padding. Each ear piece is mounted in such a way that the user has full 360 degrees of movement to achieve a more comfortable fit when placed on the ears.

With the appropriate indicators located on the inside of the headband, it is easy to recognise which way round these headphones should fir for each ear to receive the correct stereo stream. The right ear piece features the unit’s various control options on the outside cover. Based around a centrally positioned button are four segmented controls for adjusting the volume level up and down plus cycling backwards and forwards through the available tracks on whatever device is delivering the audio.

The positioning of these four controls is such that they point in the appropriate direction to which you want to go. For example the volume increase control is at the top while the control to move you forwards to the next track is also at the top. Not surprisingly the volume down and moving backwards controls through tracks are positioned at the bottom.

The central button is multi-purpose depending upon the length of press and the current operation. A press of five seconds turns on the headphones and activates Bluetooth pairing or connection. The button can then be used to pause and restart the audio. When the headphones are connected to a smartphone, this button can be used to accept an incoming call while pausing the music. A three second press will reject or end the phone call.

When powering up the unit’s battery you need to connect the supplied USB lead to the micro USB port on the right ear piece. A full charging session can take up to 3 hours and give back around 11 hours of use. An LED will glow red during charging and then turn itself off to indicate the process was complete. The same LED emits a quick blue flashing during pairing mode and then switches to a slow blue flashing when a connection is established.

Unlike other Bluetooth headsets that I have looked at, this model does not have an AUX connection. As a result you will not be able to use these headphones with an MP3 player via an audio lead with 3.5mm jack plugs. The decision not to include an AUX option, along with the lack of headband padding, is surprising.

As part of the supplied documentation, HMDX has included a chart showing the recommended maximum daily exposure times when listening to audio at various volume levels. I have included this chart as part of the review.

Sound Pressure Level (SPL)

Recommended Maximum Daily Exposure

90dB

8 hours

92dB

6 hours

95dB

4 hours

100dB

2 hours

105dB

1 hour

110dB

30 minutes

115dB

15 minutes

Greater than 115dB

Avoid this level

The JamTransit Wireless Headphones deliver reasonable audio quality. As far as comfort goes, I would rate this headset as being average. I have used more comfortable headsets and tried out some that were less comfortable. Pricing for this product, which is expected to be available from HMV, has been set at £59.99.

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Have your say!

Comment by James,
19 Dec 2015 3:54

At the moment I'm on my third pair of Jam headphones. All three were purchased at Walmart, the first two stopped working soon after I bought them so I traded them in for the only other bluetooth headphones they had under $100 ... 'JAMS'

The last or third pair of Jam headphones also stopped working after the first month so disgusted I tossed them into my closet. Pwerhaps seven or eight months later I decided to try charging them and to my surprise they worked. One month after that they stopped working, again! Well that was several months ago and still to this day will not hold a charge (led lights up only if it's plugged in)

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